In-situ growth of zinc tungstate nanorods on graphene for enhanced photocatalytic performance

Graphical abstract: Graphene/ZnWO{sub 4} (G–ZnWO{sub 4}) nanorod composite photocatalysts were prepared by a simple one-step method. Namely, the reduction of graphene oxide and the growth of ZnWO{sub 4} nanorod occurred simultaneously in one single process. An enhancement in the photocatalytic activities were observed in G–ZnWO{sub 4} composites compared with pure ZnWO{sub 4} under UV light irradiation. - Highlights: • Graphene–ZnWO{sub 4} composite photocatalyst was prepared for the first time. • The as-prepared composite photocatalysts show high activity for dye degradation. • Effect of graphene amount on the photocatalytic activity was investigated. - Abstract: Graphene–zinc tungstate (G–ZnWO{sub 4}) hybrid photocatalysts were prepared by an in-situ growth method in which the reduction of graphene oxide (GO) and the growth of ZnWO{sub 4} crystals occurred simultaneously. The materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, UV–vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The photocatalytic activity was investigated by the degradation of dye methylene blue (MB). An enhancement in the photocatalytic activity was observed for G–ZnWO{sub 4} hybrids compared with pure ZnWO{sub 4} under UV light. This improvement was attributed to the following two reasons: increased migration efficiency of photo-induced electrons and increased adsorption activity for dye molecules. Themore » effect of the amount of graphene on the photocatalytic activity was also investigated. Results showed that there was an optimum amount of 2%.« less